Keep Your WordPress Clients in Check with Easy Admin Notification

by Tom Ewer May 31^st, 2012 Leave a comment

Working with clients who are perhaps less WordPress savvy than you’d like them to be can be frustrating at times. They have a habit of fiddling where they should not fiddle. Under many circumstances, granting them limited access is the right thing to do.

But there will always be a chance of them screwing something up, and that is where Easy Admin Notification may be able to help. As you might expect, this plugin allows you to easily place a customized message within the WordPress backend.

The settings give you some control over the message, namely:

Plugins

Bring Twitter to Your Blog with Tweets as Posts

by Tom Ewer May 30^th, 2012 2 Responses

Better integration between your blog and social media outposts is rarely a bad thing.

Whilst your blog should remain the central focus (it is after all likely to be the only property that you have absolute control over), attracting new friends and followers is important too. Your blog is a standalone entity, but if you can sneak into the day to day lives of people through their social media accounts, you can bring them back time and time again.
Tweets as Posts

Bring Twitter to Your Blog with Tweets as Posts

Plugins

Improve WordPress Usability with Floating Admin Menu

by Tom Ewer May 29^th, 2012 4 Responses

In the past there have been many WordPress plugins that have gone on to become a part of the standard WordPress installation functionality. I want to introduce you to a plugin today that I believe should join that illustrious group.

Floating Admin Menu is an excellent example of how to improve the usability of the WordPress backend without sacrifice. The concept is simple, yet blindingly obvious – why shouldn’t the sidebar remain fixed in place as you scroll down? All you are left with is blank space – why not make good use of it?

Improve WordPress Usability with Floating Admin Menu

Plugins

Free Plugin Support – How to Know Who is There to Help

by Tom Ewer May 28^th, 2012 Leave a comment

One of the issues with free plugins is that they are sometimes not well-supported.

This isn’t a complaint against developers. Far from it in fact – regular readers of my posts will know that I champion free plugin developers. It is just a statement of fact.

If you are planning on using a particularly complicated plugin, knowing whether or not it is supported can make a big difference. And that is where WordPress.org’s newly redesigned plugins repository comes in:

Free Plugin Support - How to Know Who is There to Help

Miscellaneous

Calling All WordPress Enthusiasts – What is Your Favorite Website?

by Tom Ewer May 25^th, 2012 2 Responses

Back in February we published the 1st edition of the WPMU 100 – a list of the top WordPress related blogs on the internet.

At the time there were several suggestions made regarding potentially worthy sites that had not been included in the list. The inclusion criteria was simple – any site that focused the majority of its content on WordPress was a candidate. This time around, I want to make sure that every worthy site is up for consideration.
Coming Soon…

Calling All WordPress Enthusiasts - What is Your Favorite Website?

Miscellaneous

The Truth About Browser Compatibility, and What You Need To Do

by Tom Ewer May 24^th, 2012 1 Response

Are you concerned about browser compatibility? Most people are. These days there are 101 different browsers across multiple platforms, and people are seemingly screaming about it.

But what if I told you that you don’t need to worry that much about compatibility? That there are some simple practical steps you can take to ensure that your website is enjoyed as intended by the vast majority of your audience?

Compatibility checking needn’t take that much time, and today, I want to show you how.
Considering Compatibility ROI

The Truth About Browser Compatibility and What You Need To Do

Plugins

More WordPress Extensibility That Should Come As Standard: Enhanced Text Widget

by Tom Ewer May 23^rd, 2012 Leave a comment

Last week I featured Super RSS Reader, which in a nutshell, took the basic RSS feed widget and made it better. Such plugins have often proven to push the boundaries of standard WordPress functionality. The plugin I am featuring today may well do so itself.
Text Widget Woes
The text widget is a handy little feature that many people use on their WordPress blogs. As you might guess from the name, it allows you to display text in any widgetized area.

Plugins

Monster Widget – Add All Core Widgets To Your Sidebar With One Click and Drag

by Tom Ewer May 21^st, 2012 Leave a comment

As far as I can tell, theme development is a mixture of those satisfying moments when a spark of creative genius brings about a particularly attractive design element, and pure monotony as you go through the required motions in bringing your creation to life. Perhaps more often the latter than the former.

So if I spot something that can make the task of designing themes a little easier with no downside, I’ll happily take the opportunity to plug it. Monster Widget is one such something.

Monster Widget - Add All Core Widgets To Your Sidebar With One Click and Drag

Plugins

WordPress Plugins and Usability – a Match Made in Hell?

by Tom Ewer May 18^th, 2012 15 Responses

Regular readers of my posts will know that I am no programmer. Far from it. My knowledge stretches to a fairly good understanding of HTML and CSS, and a rudimentary understanding of basic programming principles.

But here’s the thing – I am a bit of a usability freak. I first read Designing Web Usability ten years ago (I was a very cool 16 year old). I like to make stuff that is easy to use, and I like to use stuff that is easy to use.

WordPress Plugins and Usability - a Match Made in Hell?